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The Sorcerer in the North
The Sorcerer of the North is a novel written by John Flanagan. John Flanagan is an Australian author who currently lives in Sydney. Flanagan wrote the first book of Ranger's Apprentice series to encourage his son to read. His son is now in his mid twenties and is an enthusiastic reader of his father's novels. Sorcerer in the North is the fifth novel of the series. Plot summary This novel starts with Will traveling to his first assignment as a fully fledged ranger. During his travel to his assigned fief, he finds a female dog bleeding to death from by the roadside. Will takes her home, heals her, and she becomes his pet. After spending a few weeks at Seacliff, the fief to which Will is assigned, Will realises that this fief has grown slack in the training of its knights and a little lax in its responsibilities. Just before the month is up, a Skandian raiding party consisting of around thirty men arrive at this lazy town. The soldiers are unprepared from the lack of practice and would certainly not stand a chance against the raiding party. Will rides out alone to meet them and they come to an agreement. The Skandian party had little choice but to raid the town because they would have starved otherwise; however, if they attacked, Will would have killed at least half of them with his yew longbow before they even reached the town. Will had a better idea and forced the baron and battlemaster to supply a certain number of animals and food for the Skandians. By this, Will did two things: he taught the baron and battle master a lesson and protected Seacliff from raiding. After a few days, Alyss, Will's lifelong friend, arrived at Seacliff on a couier mission. While sitting is Will's cabin, Alyss mentioned Halt, Will's former master, and Crowley, the Ranger Corp Commandant, had a task for him, unfortunately their conversation was overheard by John Buttle the man who had injured Will's dog earlier and was connected to a string of murders in the area. Will knocked him out cold, but Alyss wanted him dead. Will had a better solution and gave him to the Skandian raiders as a slave. Will traveled to Halt and Crowley as Alyss had instructed him. His master told him to go undercover as a jongleaur and gather information in Norgate, a northern fief, at the castle Macindaw. Lord Syron, the master at castle Macindaw, had fallen sick from some strange illness. Rumors had spread that a sorcerer was responsible for the illness and they wanted Will to investigate. At Macindaw, Will met Orman, the temporary lord of the castle as he is the son of Lord Syron. An irate bibliophile, he is always wearing black. Orman is an unpopular ruler due to the fact of his lack of skill in battle. Will also met Keren, Orman cousin and a more popular man among the subjects in the castle. Will was immediately suspicious of Orman and so was Alyss, who just so happened to be his contact sent by Halt and Crowley. Alyss was undercover as Lady Gwendolyn, a pompous and superficial women on her way to her fiance's castle in the next fief. Later as the plot unwrapped Orman summons Will to his quarters and it is revealed that the guise of a simple jongleaur failed and Orman knows Will to be a Ranger. Orman tells Will that Keren was planning a take over of the castle and that Keren had poisoned Lord Syron and has managed to do the same to Orman. So Will escapes from the castle with with Orman and his assistant to Grimsdell Woods where the "sorcerer" lived. Once there, they found Malcom the "sorcerer" and asked for his help. Alyss was puzzled seeing Will help Orman and fantasized many conclusions none of which were right. Then Keren entered her room to tell her about the recent events, but as they were talking, John Buttle walks in. He recognizes Alyss and she is captured. Will later went back to Macindaw in an attempt to save her. He climbed the tower wall and attempted to dissolve the bars protecting the window with a special acid he received from Malcom. Will fails in rescue attempt and just barley escapes from the castle with his life. The story ends with Horace, Will's best friend and an up-and-comming knight, heading to Norgate to help Will and Alyss if they need it. Category:2006 novels Category:Australian novels Category:Fantasy novels Category:Ranger's Apprentice (series)